Bangkok governor Aswin Khwanmuang has asked people not to leave Bangkok, where shopping malls and other at-risk places have been shut down to combat the spread of Covid-19.
Pol Gen Aswin made his plea for cooperation in a live broadcast on Facebook on Monday.
He said the spread of Covid-19 is serious and continuing unabated. He thanked people who refrained from going out to crowded areas.
In the past three days, he said, the number of people travelling out of Bangkok was about 10% higher than usual. About 90% of those leaving Bangkok were migrant workers from neighbouring countries rushing to border checkpoints before they were closed, he said.
In his speech, Pol Gen Aswin made the following call:
- For people not to travel out of Bangkok;
- For people to stay home and keep themselves and their residences hygienic;
- For state and private agencies to lay down measures for the prevention of Covid-19 in line with instructions from the Public Health Ministry, including social distancing of 1-2 metres;
- For those who frequented boxing rings, entertainment venues or other places where people were infected with Covid-19, and people who had close contact with them, to go into self-isolation and seek medical treatment immediately if they experienced symptoms of illness;
- For people to avoid going to crowded places;
- For all activities involving the participation of many people to be cancelled; and
- For all mass transport services to reduce the density of passengers.
The Public Health Ministry also issued an urgent announcement on Monday calling for people who left Bangkok and nearby provinces for their hometowns to keep themselves in isolation for 14 days. The ministry advised them to do as follows:
- To not eat or share food containers with other people;
- To not share personal items such as towels, pillows, water glasses, forks and spoons with other people;
- To frequently wash their hands with soap and water and/or apply 70% alcohol on them
- To avoid close contact with other people, especially the elderly or those with a chronic disease; and
- To wear a face mask and inform local health officials immediately if they have a fever or a respiratory problem.
• Thailand Covid-19 infections interactive tracking map here.